This is an application for continuation of an MBRS program at an associate investigator institution. A goal of New Mexico State University (NMSU) at Las Cruces, New Mexico is to expand research and career opportunities for minority undergraduate and graduate students who desire to pursue careers in the biomedical science disciplines. The proposed program has as its objectives: (i) to conduct high quality and competitive research germane to the missions of the categorial institutes of NIH; (ii) to increase opportunities for ethnic minority undergraduate students, majoring in the natural and physical sciences, to conduct research in the basic biomedical sciences; (iii) to encourage, recruit, train and retain minority undergraduates in these disciplines by engaging them as participants in active ongoing research programs; (iv) to assist and advise these undergraduates in order to academically advance them into post baccalaureate programs for graduate or medical training in the biomedical sciences; (v) to recruit ethnic minority graduate students and assist them in earning graduate degrees in order to develop rewarding careers in biomedical research. To accomplish these goals, it is proposed that during the current award period 36 minority undergraduate students and 20 minority graduate students will work in apprenticeship positions as part of twenty active, ongoing graduate research projects in the disciplines of Animal Science, Biology, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Microbiology, Plant Sciences, and Chemistry. Students will choose independent research projects from areas including: functions of avian respiratory systems; nitrogen metabolism in bacteria; synthetic organic chemistry, bioinorganic chemistry of cytochrome c; the role of proteases in bacteria sporulation; synthesis of metabolic inhibitor drugs; chaperone proteins involved in protein assembly; cellular protein trafficking; regulation of hormone and growth factor biosyntheses; polyamines, molecular biology; signal transduction processes; hormonal physiology; microbiology; cell transformation and differentiation studies; modern cell biology; toxicology; and electrophysiology. The major criteria for success of the program will be the number of undergraduate participants who subsequently pursue graduate degrees after completing the B.S. degree, and by the number of graduate students who successfully complete graduate degrees. This application is for continuation of a 21-year old MBRS Program which has advanced 222 minority students (83% of participants) on to post baccalaureate programs since 1974.